A NEW Atlantic storm is threatening a fresh wave of heavy rain and flooding today, piling on the misery for thousands who have already suffered the wettest Christmas in years.

Severe weather warnings have been put in place for the West Country and parts of Scotland and Wales for the next 24 hours with fears of burst streams and surface water on roads. A 200-mile belt stretching from Land’s End to Dorset and Somerset is facing up to two inches of rain and gales of up to 70mph in places.

With huge amounts of rain falling on already saturated ground, the threat of more flooding is likely to see the Environment Agency add to its list of flood warnings.

At 4pm yesterday, there were 16 in place, stretching from East Anglia and the Midlands to the South-east. A warning is the second highest threat level and warns that rising waters are expected and action is required.

Kent, Surrey and Sussex, which had the worst of the conditions over Christmas, still have eight warnings in place as well as 46 flood alerts, warning householders and businesses “to be prepared”. A further 35 flood alerts have been sounded across seven English and Welsh regions. In addition, a Met Office “yellow warning” has been extended to western and central Scotland, where a further two inches of rain are expected on Monday.

Meteogroup forecaster Sean Penston said the rain “won’t be nearly as bad compared to the last two storms but it will no doubt make it hard for people recovering from flooding”.